The Great White North

I know I am a horrible blogger - my last real post was back in April and its August now. I promise I will be better, and with my internship wrapping up my schedule should allow for more posting.

So since school adjourned:
Spent a good 2 weeks in San Diego with the family - got to meet my new nephew, eat tons of delicious food I have missed and just chilled
Went to Lake Powell - it had been so long since my last trip (6 years). It was great to just veg, play games, read and get some sun
Took an impromptu trip to the UK - me the girl who plans everything...just hopped on a plane with 2 weeks notice and had a blast putzing around England, Scotland and Wales.
Moved to Minneapolis! - Packed up the cat and all my junk for the 10 hr drive
Worked the last 8 weeks in Target's Decorative Home Division - working my tail off on my project that spans 10 categories

I had some fun and some trying times - but I wouldn't have expected anything less. I have pushed myself to a level that I didn't know I could work to, couldn't have asked for more.

Just got to push through...will be over before I know it. Hello, Good Buy!

I'm going to make it after all...

Mary did it, and hopefully I will be able to make it in Minneapolis myself.

Summer Preview Day at Target was an amazing experience! It reminded me of Kelley's Experience weekend, a lot of excitement, and a lot of people still on the fence. We met some great potential intern classmates from Kellogg, Ross and Minnesota.

We had breakfast all together and then a director came and spoke to us about his experiences and his internship project. Then there was an internship panel and breakout sessions so we can learn more about the internship projects. Next up was lunch with senior leadership; me, I sat next to a Vice President...pinch me! After I finished up my bullseye cupcake, we loaded up on a bus to get a tour of the Minneapolis area. It was a lot of fun and I am really excited to explore the city more when I get there this summer, there is so much to do and see! Last stop...our corporate housing! The apartment was nice and spacious, with lots of closet space. What more does a girl need?!

A great visit, that definitely pumped me up for the summer. Is it June 14th yet? MSP, I will be back!

MSP

I am sitting in my own hotel room downtown Minneapolis. Somebody pinch me! Me and 4 of my classmates are here to visit Target for our Summer Preview Day and to learn more about what we will be doing over the summer.

We left Bloomington after going to Market Research and then got here right before dinner. We used the opportunity to get something tasty that we wouldn't be able to get back in Bloomington. Seared Organic Salmon at Zelo, yum!

It has been great so far and we haven't even been to Target yet. Cannot wait!

The next adventure...

This week has probably been the most hectic, stressful and yet exciting period of my life. The week started off with an interview with Target. They were the reason I had come to business school, so I had a lot riding on me to do well on the interview. 10 or so of my classmates were also interviewing and we didn't know how many spots they were planning on taking from Kelley (eep!) About 6 of us got called Monday evening to come back for a second round on Tuesday.

Cue more stress, smaller pool but still no indication on how many slots. Did the best I could do under the circumstances and made sure to take a little of the edge off by talking to one of the senior buyers after. It's funny how much more relaxed you are when your resume is no longer on the table. Decisions were to come out on Weds. *cue dramatic music*

Weds morning came and went, as did Weds afternoon. All my classmates knew how badly I wanted the position and were checking in with me every chance they got. I began to sound like a broken record with "still no news." I think by the time I got home I didn't have any fingernails left!

When we got home, I pretty much gave up on the idea of hearing whether I would make it or not. I settled in to watch "Everybody Hates Chris" (how apropos right?!) and tried to relax. Then, BZZZ BZZZ! A 612 number! OMG! And that was it! My offer to my dream internship, still makes me get all choked up. I had worked so hard for it so to see it come full circle was great validation.

After I got off the phone, I was frantic! Who to call first!? After attacking Charlton and squealing for a good 5 minutes, I called my mom who was just as excited as I was. Then there was my sister, brother, friends and my aunt to fill in. I seriously got nothing done yesterday.

This has been a nutty week, but I am glad it is finally over and with such positive results. Now I can finally start focusing on schoolwork again!

And so it starts...

Today is my first on campus interview. I am excited and nervous, and just want to do well and not embarrass myself. It's like b-school interviews although the stakes are higher as I no longer have a job to fall back on.

But it's at 8:30 and I have to make sure I have adequate time on campus and look cute in my suit so better go get ready. Wish me luck!

resume...DROP!

As if we didn't all have enough on our plates with our marketing final this afternoon and accounting tomorrow, resume drops for on campus interviewing began today. I probably was the only first year that popped out of bed when the calendar appointment went off on my phone and logged into GCS to get it taken care of. But now its done, and now I wait. Preference lists don't come out for a few more weeks so until then...fingers crossed!

What is it REALLY like...

to be a marketer? That was the question of the day yesterday. Our CMA day had a panel of 6 recent alums who talked candidly about their jobs and the cultures of their company so we could get a better sense of what we can expect during our internships. Then we had 4 break-out sessions with them to work on some cases that they have had to work on. It was a lot of fun and they ranged from how do we evaluate what is important to the customer nutritionally to how do we set up our planogram. It was nice after being bogged down with our case competition to be reminded why we are here.

We finished up at about 3, I vegged for a bit and then headed to the grocery store to pick up our turkey. Then it was time for my first "Ladies Club" dinner. We went to Cafe Django, an Asian fusion restaurant. It was pretty good and it was fun for all of us to celebrate the holiday.

It's weird not having to go to school today, or not having to do research. I have a feeling today will be filled with a lot of cleaning, packing and working on my exam for CMA. But what an improvement over case comp! Yay for Thanksgiving break!

Today in a nutshell:

• Class from 8:15 - 12:30
• Lunch of lukewarm tomato soup from the cafe downstairs
• Another session of accounting from 1:00-2:00
• Get home at 3:30
• Have a snack while watching Martha Stewart and reading Smartbrief
• Research the company for my Slam Session
• Read for Quant
• Have a Lean Cuisine at my desk while reading more Quant at 6:00
• Head to my Slam Session at 7:00
• Slam Session 7:30-8:30
• Grocery Shopping 8:45-9:20
• Read for Quant while having some snacks 9:30-10:00
• Research internship opportunities 10:00-present

Don’t feel like I got anything done either! Now its time to hit the sack and try to get a little more sleep after I get in a few more pages of Quant.

Dream Internship

Posts like this get a fire lit under me, I feel so behind. Hope I can land the “dream” one myself in January and don’t have to grasp for straws in the spring.

Let the Speed Dating Begin

Yesterday was a full morning of speed dating, er networking. We headed back to the convention center and were shuffled into two panel discussions. First up was marketing, with presenters from Walmart, P&G, Kraft and Target. Was an interesting combination of manufacturers and retailers so you can get a sense of their relationship and how they work together/against each other. Since the panelists didn't switch I then headed to the consulting/supply chain session. There were a few interesting companies but nothing that I was planning on pursuing.

Afterward we were herded upstairs to the real Round Tables. Each had a sign for the company some balloons and a company rep. And with any blind date one of the daters shows up in a blue shirt or with a red flower in the lapel, many companies showed up with a slew of products decorating their tables with their products.

I met with Target, Jewel-Osco, American Greetings, Kraft, Abbott Labs, General Mills, p&g and Kimberly-Clark. Everytime you really started to get into a conversation with a rep a cowbell would ring and we would all have to go to another table like a crazy game of musical chairs. I gained a lot of insight into how their internship programs were set up and came away with a few more companies to target during my internship search.

With no class for the day, we came back home had lunch and watched some Mad Men. Then I had a much needed nap and got to writing my thank yous and other networking emails. I made some pasta for dinner and then worked on my quant assignment before crashing at 12:30.